European Trade Union Committee for Education

On 4 September 2017, the new school year started in Poland. 2017 is the year in which the reform of the education system comes into force. This is the reform that was widely criticised by the major educational communities. The government ignored protests organised in various forms throughout the preceding year, and the Polish Parliament rejected a motion for a referendum on the reform, which had been signed by nearly one million citizens. In reaction to this, on 4 September, a rally was organised by parents, teachers and representatives of organisations active in education.

During the protest, members of the referendum committee, that brought together those who opposed the education reform, announced the transformation of the referendum committee into the “Together for the schools” Committee that will aim to work towards the quality of education and equal access to said education and towards defending the democratic model of education and the autonomy of teachers. Members of the Committee "Together for schools" informed the public of their plans, which consisted of:

• monitoring how the reform is implemented and its consequences for students, teachers and local governments;
• organisation of joint seminars, conferences, information meetings on the effects of the reform;
• developing and providing parental and teacher support materials for the defence of a democratic school model.